Adjustable support



Dec, 2, 1941. w. s. sAuNDERs ADJUSTABLE SUPPORT 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed April 7, 1939 fl u f INVENTOR WALTER S. SAUNDERS BY y 2.lZRNEx/S;

Dec. 2, 1941.

W. S. SAUNDERS ADJUSTABLE SUPPORTl 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Film April 7, 1959 mm ww w. mm om v ov Patented ec. 2, 1941 10 Claims.

This invention relates to supporting devices for the adjustable mounting of objects, such as vehicular seats, which must be held very rigidly in position, yet must be easily and quickly movable at will to another adjusted position.

ln the quantity production of automobiles, constant eiort to improve the product as a whole, and to incorporate improved features in increasing numbers, forces the greatest economy in the construction of individual units. The use of relatively thin gauge stamped sheet metal, in the fabrication of seat supports is a practical necessity, thereiore, although this material presents certain diiiiculties in preventing unwanted movement and rattling of the seat due to distortionl of the sheet metal parts.

The present invention aims to incorporate in an adjustable seat supporting mechanism improved means ior taking up tolerances and lost motion between moving parts, and for constantly urging the parts 'into closer engagement, to eliminate the effects of looseness, whether due to wear, or whatever its causes.

Another object is to provide such a seat supporting mechanism in which sliding friction is virtually eliminated, and freely working rollers are arranged to carry the entire load, and which is of great rigidity despite the fact that the rollers are carried by a relatively thin gauge sheet metal structure.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following description, wherein reference is made to the accompanying drawings illustrating a preferred embodiment of my invention and wherein similar reference numerals designate similar parts throughout the several views.

In the drawings:

Figure l is a plan View of a seat supporting assembly constructed in accordance with the principles of this invention, the synchronizing shaft being centrally broken away.

Figure 2 is a side elevational View of one of the supporting units, taken as indicated by the line and arrows 2-2 of Figure l.

Figure 3 is an enlarged plan View of one of the supporting units.

Figure 4 is a horizontal section thereof taken substantially on line liof Figure 2, and locking in the direction of the arrows.

Figures 5 and 6 are vertical sections taken substantially on lines 5--5 and 6 6, respectively of Figure 2, and looking in the direction of the arrows.

Referring now to the drawings, in which reference character i0 Vdesignates a'floor or other suitable supporting platform upon which the assembly is mounted, as by means of screws l2, it will be seen that the Xed or track portion ll of the assembly, attached to the floor, is of L- section except at its ends, where it is of U-form to support the front and rear rollers ld, I6. The rollers are journaled upon tubular shafts i5, il respectively, the ends of which are expanded to secure them in the side flanges of the track portion Il. l

"The carriage portion Sil which serves to support the seat til' is generally in the `form o a channel turn-edvupon its side, so that one of its side webs rests upon and rolls over the rollers Ui, i6. Downturned flanges 3i, k32 project from the free edge of such side web of thecarriage channel,

`and lie beside the rollers lli, it to limit lateral displacement of the carriage in one direction. As best shown in Figure 2, the bottom flange of the carriage channel, which rests upon the rollers, is so shaped longitudinally as to cause the carriage, during movement, to change its angularity with 4respect to the floor, thus tilting the seat in a desired Hfashion during adjustment. The seat, indicated only fragrnentarily in dotted lines, is secured tothe carriage by means of bolts and clinch nuts lil.

Additional rollers 24, 2t, arranged to overengage the bottom iiange of the carriage, are so mounted and spring-urged that they act both to hold the carriage down, and to urge it to one side, taking up both vertical and lateralk tolerances and lost motion. Each of the rollers 24, 25 is carried by a bellcrank 22, to an upwardly extending arm of which it is rotatably attached by a stub shaft 23. The bellcranks in turn are pivoted upon the respective roller shafts. l5, il, and constantly urged in one direction by compression springs 25, trapped between their laterally projecting arms and the bottom of the track. The rollers 24, 25, of frusto-conic form, as best indicated in Figure 5, act, by virtue of the downward force applied to them by the springs 25, Iboth to'urge the carriage downwardly against the rollers I4, I6, and to force the carriage laterally in such direction as to press the flanges 3l, 32 against the sides of the rollers ill, I5, taking up all clearance between the parts in question.

The side web of the track overlaps the carriage, and a series of notches 33 cut in its top, are adapted to receive and hold a detent tooth 32,

' integrally carried by a latch arm S5 pivoted upon the carriage and constantly urged toward locked position by a torsion spring 3l. The arm will be seen to be pivoted upon the inside of the carriage, and the toothed portion thereof projects through a slot 38 which serves to brace the holding portion of the detent as well as to permit movement thereof into and from engagement with the notches when the arm is swung.

The description has been conned to one of the supporting assemblies, in view of the fact that the two units, one of which is of course adapted to support each end of the seat, may be of like (but symmetrically opposite) construction, except for the locking mechanism, which need be carried by one only.

The locking eifect is transmitted to the opposite unit, and movement of .-the ycarriage `iS Syn-` chronized, by means of a transverse shaft 40 geared to the two carriages and journaled in the track portions. The synchronizing shaft 40 is journaled at its ends in the aligned hollow rollers shafts I1 of the opposed units, and a gear 42, fast on the shaft near each end, meshes with a sheet metal rack assembly 45, in which teeth are formed by a series of punched holes 46. The rack is formed of spring steel, bent to U-section. As best shown in Figure 5, -one flange .is riveted to the carriage, while the perforated bottom iiange which meshes with the -gear 442 is free. The bottom flange is stressed -suiiiciently to exert downward pressure upon the gear Y42 and take up all clearance Ibetween the rack and pinion portions, and in the shaft mounting. Certain of the perforations in the rack, designated 46A, are extended inwardly far enough to permit the gear to be slid into mesh therewith from the side when the end of the shaft is fitted into the tube I1 l during assembly. It will be seen that this is only possible when the slots 46A are lined 4up with the axis of shaft 40.

What I -claim is:

1. Adjustable supporting means for a seat or other load, comprising `a pair of spaced rollers rotatable upon xed axes, a carriage comprising a channel element disposed with its side webs projecting substantially horizontally, the bottomf means for supporting the load upon Ithe Itop web of the channel.

2. Adjustable supporting means for a lseat or other load, comprising a pair of spaced rollers rotatable upon fixed axes, a carriage -comprising a channel element disposed with its side webs projecting substantially horizontally, the -bottom web of said channel element being rollable over said rollers, additional rollers overengaging said bottom web to prevent unwanted vertical displacement of the channel, means urging said additional rollers downwardly aga-inst said Ibottom web to hold down the carriage, said additional rollers having inclined tread portions which also bear laterally against said carriage to take up unwanted lateral play vbetween the carriage and rollers.

3. Adjustable supporting -means for a seat or other load, comprising a pair of spaced `rollers rotatable upon fixed axes, a carriage comprising a channel element with its side webs projecting substantially horizontally, the bottom webof `said channel being rollable over said rollers, downwardly projecting iiange portions carried by said bottom web and extending beside said rollers, additional rollers having tapered peripheral portions overengaging said bottom web to prevent unwanted vertical displacement of the carriage, means urging said additional rollers downwardly against said bottom web, the peripheral taper being such that said rollers thereby also bear laterally against said iiange portions to take up unwanted vertical and lateral play between said vcarriage and rollers and maintain a predetermined friction between .said rollers and downwardly projecting Iiange portions.

4. Adjustable supporting means for a seat or other load, comprising a fixed support, a pair -of rollers carried thereby in spaced and generally coplanar relation, `the axes thereof being substantially parallel and lying in a generally horizontal plane, a carriage including an elongated web resting upon said rollers and adapted to roll thereover in a path substantially at right angles to said axes, and additional roller means also carried by said fixed support and having portions inclined with respect to both the plane of said first-mentioned rollers and the plane of their axes, vsaid portions bearing angularly against `said web upon fits .side opposite that contacting the first mentioned rollers to yieldably maintain said carriage and -rollers in predetermined relation and `take `up lost motion therebetween and between Athe rollers and xed support.

5. Adjustable supporting .means for a seat or the like, comprising a pair of spaced supporting rollers, acarriage Acomprising a channel member disposed .on its .side with webs projecting substantially .horizontally one above the other, the bottom web of `said channel "being rollable over said rollers, additional roller means bearing downwardly against said channel member and having .inclined portions which by cam action also urge the same laterally, to take up lost motion therebetween, .a kswingable arm supporting said fadditional roller means, and spring means .urging said arm in a predetermined direction.

6. Adjustable ysupporting means for a seat or other load, comprising .a frame rof generally U- section, spaced .rollers journaled in said frame, a carriage rollable over said rollers and having a downwardly projecting .flange portion lying beside said rollers, `additional roller means carried by `said frame and bearing against said carriage and also having sloping cam portions bearing laterally thereagainst to urgeisaid flange portions against `said `iirst Amentioned rollers, and supporting means for said additional roller means comprising Aan arm mounted coaxially with ysaid first mentioned rollers and carrying said additional roller means, .said `arm being movable to permit movement .of the additional roller means toward and from said first-mentioned rollers, and spring means urging said roller means toward said first mentioned rollers.

'7. Adjustable supporting means for a seat or the like, comprising in conjunction with a frame of substantially U-section, rollers journaled on spaced axes in said frame, -a carriage having a laterally projecting web rollable over said rollers, a downwardly projecting ange Aportion carried by said web .and extending beside said rollers, said frame and carriage having overlapping portions on the opposite side .of said rollers from lsaid flange portion, additional take-up roller means movabl-y .carried by said frame and over- `enga-ging and bearing vdownwardly against said web and also having sloping portions adapted to urge said fiange portion laterally Ato maintain the carriage against unwanted vertical and lateral take-up rollers toward said rst mentioned rollers.

10. Means as set forth in claim 7 in which said take-up roller means comprises a plurality of 5 rollers of substantially conic form engaging the edge of said web, a swingable supporting arm for each of said take-up rollers mounted coaxially with one of said first mentioned rollers, and spring means urging said arms in directions 10 to force said take-up rollers against said web.

WALTER S. SAUNDERS. 

